Cambodia: Flow of Vietnamese tourist declines 14.5 percent

Cambodia is renowned for its UNESCO-recognised World Heritage site Angkor Wat.
(Photo: tripadvisor.com)

Phnom Penh (VNA) – The number of Vietnamese tourists, the
second-most common visitors to Cambodia, fell in the first nine months of this
year by 14.5 percent compared with the same period last year, according to the
Cambodian Ministry of Tourism.

Foreign arrivals to Cambodia rose 11.5 percent to nearly 4 million in the period.
Chinese tourists topped the list with more than 840,000 people, up 45 percent.

Last year, nearly 960,000 Vietnamese holidaymakers travelled to Cambodia,
making it the leading country in foreign visitors to the country.

According to Kong Sopheareak, Director of the Statistics and Information
Department under the Ministry of Tourism, Cambodia expects to attract a total
of 5.5 million foreign holidaymakers by the end of this year, a year-on-year
increase of 10 percent. The country hopes to welcome 7 million foreigners by
2020.

Tourism is one of the key economic pillars of Cambodia. In 2015 alone, the
country received nearly 4.8 million foreign visitors and raked in more than 3
billion USD which contributed 20 percent to the national gross domestic product.

Cambodian is renowned for its two UNESCO-recgonised World Heritage sites:
Angkor Wat and Preah Vihear Temple. It also includes top sea tourism destinations
like Preah Sihanouk, Koh Kong, Kep and Kampot and ecotourism sites in
Ratanakiri and Mondolkiri.-VNA